FV4202

Description

The FV4202 is a rank British medium tank with a battle rating of (AB), (RB), and (SB). It was introduced in Update 1.63 "Desert Hunters". As the prototype of the Chieftain, it features the heavy sloping armour of the Chieftain on the chassis of a Centurion tank.

The FV4202 gives the player an excellent insight into what to expect from the rank IV and V medium tanks of the British ground forces. It features heavily sloped frontal armour and a powerful high penetrating cannon. The FV4202 is relatively mobile for its armour and weight, which can be used to put pressure on the enemy. When on the move, mind the turret armour and the lower frontal glacis, as these are the FV4202's greatest weak spots.

General info

Survivability and armour

Armour type:

• Rolled homogeneous armour
• Cast homogeneous armour (Turret)

Armour	Front	Sides	Rear	Roof
Hull	51.2 mm (70°) Front glacis 74.8 mm (46°) Lower glacis	51.2 (13°) + 13 mm	31 mm (2°) Upper 31 mm (51°)	27.2 mm
Turret	170-200 mm (0-60°)	89.6 mm	92.6 mm	60 mm
Cupola	59.5 mm	59.5 mm	59.5 mm	60 mm

Notes:

• Suspension wheels and tracks are 20 mm thick.
• The front of the turret is heavily sloped and varies in thickness, being the thickest on the sides of the gun at 240 mm
• The turret ring is 200 mm

Aiming for the LFP (Lower Frontal Plate), with an effective thickness of around 150 mm, is probably the easiest place to go for when targeting the FV4202 from the front. By doing so, you are taking out both the driver and ammo. Aiming for the plate under it to take out the transmission and possibly the driver is also an option from the front. If your tank has a more powerful gun, aiming for the upper cupola or weak spots such as the gun mantlet or armour cheeks is possible. Alternatively, the turret ring is fairly exposed and only 200 mm thick; a penetration here will often lead to a kill. Thanks to the FV4202's thick turret roof, shooting there with HE is usually ineffective.

When encountering the FV4202 from the side, the skirt armour and tracks can sometimes catch a shot or two. Instead, aim for the side of the turret if that's a possibility. 3 of the 4 crew members are located in the turret, and a penetration will likely kill two and destroy the gun's breech, leading to a kill or eliminating their ability to return fire. Key ammo racks are located beside the driver and directly below the turret; aim here when able for an easy kill. The engine deck only has a thin 8 mm plate of armour: aim here while piloting an aircraft.

Mobility

Game Mode	Max Speed (km/h)		Weight (tons)	Engine power (horsepower)		Power-to-weight ratio (hp/ton)
	Forward	Reverse		Stock	Upgraded	Stock	Upgraded
Arcade			Expression error: Unexpected * operator.	790		Expression error: Unexpected round operator.	__.__
Realistic				451		Expression error: Unexpected round operator.	__.__

The FV4202 is decently mobile for a medium tank, but nothing exceptional. With only a 32 km/h top speed and 510 horsepower, it will reach its top speed quickly but be slow to reach key positions on maps. Do note the poor reverse speed of 5 km/h: retreating from combat or backing up from angles will be slow; make sure to plan your positions in advance.

Modifications and economy

Armaments

Main armament

84 mm 20pdr OQF Mk.I					Turret rotation speed (°/s)					Reloading rate (seconds)
Mode	Capacity	Vertical	Horizontal	Stabilizer	Stock	Upgraded	Full	Expert	Aced	Stock	Full	Expert	Aced
Arcade	50	-10°/+20°	±180°	Two-plane	17.14	23.72	28.80	31.85	33.88	8.19	7.25	6.68	6.30
Realistic					10.71	12.60	15.30	16.92	18.00

Ammunition

Penetration statistics
Ammunition	Type of warhead	Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)
		10 m	100 m	500 m	1,000 m	1,500 m	2,000 m
Shot Mk.1	APCBC	232	229	216	201	187	173
Shot Mk.3	APDS	384	380	363	343	324	306
Shell Mk.1	HE	15	15	15	15	15	15

Shell details
Ammunition	Type of warhead	Velocity (m/s)	Projectile mass (kg)	Fuse delay (m)	Fuse sensitivity (mm)	Explosive mass (TNT equivalent) (kg)	Ricochet
							0%	50%	100%
Shot Mk.1	APCBC	1,000	9.1	-	-	-	48°	63°	71°
Shot Mk.3	APDS	1,430	3.22	-	-	-	75°	78°	80°
Shell Mk.1	HE	600	7.5	0.2	0.1	1.13	79°	80°	81°

Smoke shell characteristics
Ammunition	Velocity (m/s)	Projectile mass (kg)	Screen radius (m)	Screen deploy time (s)	Screen hold time (s)	Explosive mass (TNT equivalent) (g)
20pdr Shell SS Mk.1	250	9.3	9	5	20	50

The FV4202 has two main rounds available: the Shot Mk. 1 round, and the Shot Mk. 3 APDS round. Both rounds are worth using depending on if you prefer raw penetration or greater post-penetration capability.

• Shot Mk. 1 is available stock, and features up to 232 mm of penetration. It's a fine stock shell, with no notable qualities. Like most other British rounds, it is solid shot.
• Shot Mk. 3 is a Tier 2 modification, and features up to 384 mm of penetration. Being APDS, it has smaller post-penetration capability, but is highly likely to penetrate targets within your battle rating.

Ammo racks

Full ammo	1st rack empty	2nd rack empty	3rd rack empty	4th rack empty	5th rack empty	6th rack empty	Visual discrepancy
50	45 (+5)	39 (+11)	34 (+16)	29 (+21)	9 (+41)	1 (+49)	No

Notes:

• Shells are modelled individually and disappear after having been shot or loaded.
• Rack 6 is a first stage ammo rack. It totals 8 shells and gets filled first when loading up the tank.
• This rack is also emptied early: the rack depletion order at full capacity is: 6 - 1 - 2 - etc. until 5.
• Simply not firing when the gun is loaded will move ammo from racks 1 to 5 into rack 6. Firing will interrupt the restocking of the ready racks.

Machine guns

7.62 mm L3A1
Mount	Capacity (Belt)	Fire rate	Vertical	Horizontal
Coaxial	7,500 (250)	500	-10°/+20°	N/A

Usage in battles

The FV4202 has sloped frontal armour, a well-rounded and thickly armoured turret and a powerful 84 mm gun with access to APDS ammunition. The first thing that you may notice when you first get the FV4202 is that the stock 20-pdr gun is far more effective than the stock 17-pdr gun, since you start with APCBC ammunition, which is far more effective than the 17-pdr's purely AP stock rounds. This makes it far more forgiving than tanks like the Centurion MK1 or the Challenger. When fighting in a low rank game, it can be a game-changing tank. It can easily take out Tiger I and Panther tanks at long range whilst remaining resistant to enemy fire. Even Tiger II tanks are vulnerable to the 84 mm gun, though their gun poses a big threat to you, especially at long range. When you get up-tiered, you will face far more challenging enemies. At this battle rating, you can face the Jagdtiger, Leopard I, IS-6, IS-3, IS-4M and the T-54 (and even the Maus if you're playing realistic). These are all highly resistant to your APDS (even from the side in the IS-3/IS-4M case), and have extremely potent armament.

When you get up-tiered, the weaknesses of the FV4202 start to show. To start, it has a very poor reverse speed. As a British tanker, you will have experience with similar issues from vehicles with the Cromwell chassis, but the FV4202 has nowhere near the mobility, so it is difficult to quickly escape from a bad situation as it was with Cromwell-based tanks. The frontal armour is thin and so particularly vulnerable to high-calibre HE shells (apart from the rather resilient turret roof). Furthermore, although thickly armoured, the turret has some flat parts which are easily penetrated by many tanks of the BR. Finally, the tank has only four crew members, three of whom are in the turret. A turret penetration can take out the entire turret crew and destroy the tank.

Tactics

Hull down - Due to the good gun depression and strong turret armour, the FV4202 performs well in a hull down position, where only the turret is visible to the enemy. Some maps are better for this tactic than others. It involves finding a favourable spot overlooking a capture point or a clear field of fire, setting up a good defensive position and taking out enemies that come into your sights. This way you will be a lot more difficult to destroy as enemies can only get glancing shots on your sloped and rounded turret.

Sniping - With APDS, the 84 mm is a very precise and accurate gun. Therefore, it is effective at taking out targets at long range. It is extremely satisfying sniping enemy tanks at the other end of the map. This is a good tactic for the FV4202, where you can hang back, retain the effectiveness of your armour and pick off enemy tanks at your leisure. Just ensure to change position every few shots to avoid getting bombed or knocked out by another tank. When you get down tiered, Tigers, Panther, IS-1/2 and T-34s can be leisurely picked off at range while you remain largely immune to their hits.

Frontline tank - Particularly when down tiered, the FV4202 makes an excellent front-line vehicle. Its main gun can counter any threat, particularly Tiger I and Panther Tanks, whilst its heavily sloped armour and strong turret allows it to bounce some hits. This allows you to push capture points and take out enemy tanks on the move with your stabilizer. Be careful not to overextend, the FV4202 is very vulnerable from the sides. Instead, you should get to a convenient place and then initiate a hull down tactic.

Specific enemies worth noting

• Tiger II (P)/(H)⁣ - With its BR, the FV4202 is more than likely to see a Tiger II in the field. If encountered in the front, aim for the cheeks of the turret, the right side to knock out the gunner and render the Tiger II unable to fire. Use this opportunity to withdraw for a better vantage point for more capable tanks to destroy the Tiger II, or for the enemy Tiger to make another mistake and get shot by the FV4202 again. Avoid getting hit by the Tiger II's 88 mm gun. It will be able to penetrate you at long range, and a hit will most likely knock you out.
• IS-2 (IS-2 (1944)) - Another common enemy heavy tank. If it is the regular IS-2, the 20-pounder can easily penetrate the hull armour and the turret cheeks (right side again for the gunner). The mod. 1944 is more complicated due to its improved frontal armour so it is important to be able to target the turret cheeks to knock out its fighting capability. Like the Tiger II, the IS-2 has a very powerful main gun. A direct hit will almost certainly destroy the FV4202 in one hit.
• T29⁣ - American heavy tank capable of outright destroying the FV4202. Frontal glacis and turret armour near impenetrable in the front. Aim for the lower glacis or even a glancing shot on the turret side for a chance to penetrate the armour.
• Tortoise⁣ - This heavily armoured vehicle prevents the FV4202 from penetrating its frontal armour, the only weak point being the commander's location and that is not a good place as the 20-pounder does not have a lot of post-penetration damage. Best case is to simply withdraw and attack it from the sides.
• Panther II⁣ - Its frontal armour can be penetrated by the APDS shot on the 20-pounder. The Panther II comes with the famous 88 mm KwK43 gun, so caution is needed. To disable or knock out this vehicle, you can hit the right side of its frontal glacis or hit it on the right side of the turret to make sure it doesn't fire back.
• IS-6 - The IS-6 is one of the most challenging vehicles that you face at this rank. It is fast, very well armoured and has a powerful gun. Even though it is a premium, it is very common. You will face it often. It can easily bounce the 84 mm APDS from the front and even the sides. If angled properly, the IS-6 is very difficult to displace. It is not invincible, though. Firing at it from high ground can reduce the effectiveness of its angled armour and HEAT-fs is good for penetrating its armour, so working closely with other tanks is important.
• Maus⁣ - The very sight of a Maus on the battlefield can be enough to make some players turn tail and run. It is an extremely menacing opponent to face on the battlefield, and its huge 128 mm gun will have no trouble taking you out of the game. Even the 75 mm coaxial gun can damage your main gun and tracks, if not penetrate the FV4202 from the side. Luckily, the Maus is not invincible. With APDS you can penetrate the turret cheeks and side armour relatively easily, but every so often your rounds will simply pass through the massive superstructure without doing very much damage. The internal layout of the Maus is quite complex and is lined with extra 20 mm plates of armour, protecting crew members and modules from internal shrapnel. Destroying the Maus in one shot is extremely difficult, so it is typically best to retreat after a successful hit.
• Jagdtiger - The Jagdtiger is armed with the same devastating 128 mm gun as the Maus, which is absolutely deadly if it hits you. Couple this with formidable frontal armour and you have a very dangerous opponent. Try to flank this opponent or hit the flat superstructure on the left and right of the main gun.

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Decent mobility for the size
• Heavy punching 84 mm 20-pounder "Quick-firing" gun can penetrate most enemies seen at its BR
• Very strong sloped frontal armour able to withstand most shells fired at the FV4202
• Resistant to Soviet 85 mm and German 88 mm KwK36 cannons at long range
• Has a stabilizer which allows for accurate fire on the move
• Has a low profile compared to other British tanks of the same rank, such as the Centurion Mk 3
• Unlockable APDS shell for heavier targets

Cons:

• Weak side armour
• Overall thin armour yet sloped
• Lower front plate is generally weak and most penetrative hits will take out the driver and ammo rack
• Poor reverse speed
• A part of the soft turret armour is near a flat weak point
• Vulnerable to air attacks from planes with heavier guns as engine roof armour is lacking
• Although a small target, there is an 89 mm weak spot right above the gun: shots penetrating here may knock out the turret crew
• The cupola on top of the turret is a deadly weak spot: one penetration from APHE will take you out
• Is only equipped with solid shot ammunition, with no explosive filler. The APDS lacks post-penetration damage and spalling shrapnel.

History

Describe the history of the creation and combat usage of the vehicle in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too long, take it to a separate article, taking a link to the article about the vehicle and adding a block "/History" (example: https://wiki.warthunder.com/(Vehicle-name)/History) and add a link to it here using the main template. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <ref></ref>, as well as adding them at the end of the article with <references />. This section may also include the vehicle's dev blog entry (if applicable) and the in-game encyclopedia description (under === In-game description ===, also if applicable).

Media

Skins

• Skins and camouflages for the FV4202 from live.warthunder.com.

Videos

See also

Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:

• reference to the series of the vehicles;
• links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.

External links

Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:

• topic on the official game forum;
• other literature.

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Cruiser Tanks
Tank, Cruiser, Comet I (A34)	Comet I · Comet I "Iron Duke IV"
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Centurion	FV4202
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Britain medium tanks
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